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Ask HN: Which books teach mental models?

Read the piece by Mutaschak[1] yesterday and found myself agreeing with components of the piece but distinctly feeling that some well-crafted books take a more active role in conveying and teaching mental models than simply summarized facts (which can be done well, but is subject to being forgotten).

The question, then, is what books effectively introduced a new mental model or perspective?

Two recent examples from my own reading, non-fiction and fiction:

Loonshots (Bahcall) - model & "rules" for structure of innovation in orgs is introduced, discussed from various perspectives, examples given, summarized in text, repeated.

Overstory (Powers) - character stories all reinforce the perspective of an alternative relationship with trees and plants, the giant ecosystem and systems thinking.

[1] https://andymatuschak.org/books/

473 points wintercarver 7 years ago 92 comments

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